“If you’ve ever thought about doing a bike tour but you are struggling with the logistics or want to hear from people who’ve been there and done it before then I strongly recommend taking a look.” –London Cyclist

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Download the first 45 pages of the book for free! Simply click the button below, enter your email and we’ll send you a PDF copy. You’ll also receive our occasional bike touring newsletters (don’t worry, you can unsubscribe at any time).

About The Book

Our first bike tour was a world trip. Over the course of a few months, we quit our jobs, sold everything we owned and nervously rolled out our front door in September 2006.

The initial learning curve was steep but we learned quickly. We learned how to set up a tent just about anywhere, began to appreciate the value of going slowly, the kindness of strangers and how you can never have too much food!

Along the way, we wrote down the lessons, tips and ideas from our bike tour. The Bike Touring Survival Guide is the result. It’s full of our experiences, plus the stories and photos of over 50 bike tourists. We hope the book inspires and encourages you on our own big adventure.

Reviews

Everything a bicycle tourist could possibly want is in there, and all of it well-written, well researched, well thought-out, practical, neatly ordered and nicely presented. The style is conversational, and the authors have managed to pitch it so that anybody, from rank beginners to sinewy sun-bronzed hard-cases who’ve been on the road for years, can get something out of it. –Roff Smith

Round-the-world cyclists, Friedel and Andrew have written a delightful handbook on preparing for — and enjoying to the fullest — the grand adventure that bicycle travel can be. They cover a wide range of topics, from getting ready, the logistics of a day on the bike, and international travel considerations, to gear suggestions with a ready-made FAQ and tips on wild camping…. I recommend picking up this book. It’s a solid guide to getting yourself launched on the bicycle tour of your dreams. –Adventure Cycling Association

I am very pleased to have purchased my copy of The Bike Touring Survival Guide. Over two-hundred pages of distilled experience in a well-presented and lavishly illustrated, weightless package – surely, the cycle tourers dream pre-planning manual. –Spoke2Spoke

This book’s got soul! I’d recommend it to anyone setting out on the road to get the best ‘feel’ for what life on the road is like. -Stephen Lord, author of the Adventure Cycle-Touring Handbook

It’s a well-presented book that’s simple in design and easy to navigate, and one that uses photographs and diagrams to full effect. It’s also well-written and professionally edited, something that can’t be said for all self-published books. It’s an excellent investment because the tips and advice within its (electronic) covers are likely to save the average cyclist more than the cover price over the duration of a cycle tour. – Freewheeling France

One need not be a long-distance cyclist to enjoy this book, it is enough that you just might like to take a ride sometime in the future. The book works well as both inspiration and help in practical situations (equipment selection etc.). –Trygve Pløhn (translated from Norwegian)

Having downloaded your book and devoured it, as well as all the great info on your site I am drunk with wanderlust. I want to sell everything I own and take off tomorrow! The greatest thing that I got from you guys is that there is no reason to fear other lands and other cultures because we are all the same. Thanks guys! – Craig Turner

Excellent mix of anecdotes and useful detail, which means it’s not just a dry manual. Liked the ‘here’s what worked for us and others’ attitude, rather than ‘thou shalt’. –Graeme

Written for the world traveller, but equally good for the weekend cycle tourist and even useful for the day trip cyclist. With things like how to cope with a flat tire when you have no puncture repair kit or spare tube. It is full of information that can only be found out by people who have been actually been on a world tour, and this book is full of tips and advice. I’ve been around the world 3 times, never by bike yet, but I still picked up tips on travelling in general. This is one book I will keep on my kindle when I set off by bicycle next year. A great book and well worth the price, I know having just read it that I have already saved the price of the book with tips that will save me a lot more than the cost of the book. -Jerry Connor

This book is awesome! I have read so many ‘intro to touring’ books and they’ve all been the same, summaries on how to find the bike, find the gear, learn how to bike. Your book has gotten into the logistics that others haven’t like a detailed description on where to stay, how to save for the trip and getting along with everyone along the way. I also appreciated the chapter for ladies only, electronics, and going solo. It gave me some confidence to just go for it!! -Evy Schiers

Frequently Asked Questions

Is This Book For Me? The tips in this book are relevant for anyone planning a bike tour. We place a special focus on extended and international journeys, based largely on the situations we encountered during our world bike trip. Since we only tour independently, this book might be a little less interesting if you only want to take an organised tour.

What Format Does The Book Come In? The Bike Touring Survival Guide is a digital download. You can pay securely with a credit card or with your Paypal balance. You can download it as soon as you buy it.

You get 3 files:

PDF (perfect if you want to print a paper copy)

mobi for Kindle owners and people who use Kindle apps on iPhones, iPads etc…

ePub for eReaders such as the Nook and Sony

How Do I Open The File On My iPad / Kindle / Laptop…? When you download the book, you get all 3 formats (PDF, mobi and ePub) in a single zipped file. To read the book, simply unzip the file (we use iZip on our iPad) and open the file you want to use. The PDF file should open on any device with Adobe’s Acrobat reader installed. The mobi file can be read with any Kindle eReader or Kindle app (free to download), and the ePub opens in a variety of programmes such as iBooks (on Mac devices) or apps such as the NOOK reading app.

Is There A Print Version? Not yet. We’re working on it but, with a new baby to take care of, it could be some time before it’s ready.

Why Is It So Affordable? The Bike Touring Survival Guide is one of the best value books about bike touring that you can buy. We purposely keep the price low because our main aim is to inspire and share practical information with others. We’d give it away for free if we could but since we’ve taken time off from our day jobs to write it, we have to charge a small amount to recoup the costs that go into writing and maintaining the book. The money we earn also helps us cover the running costs of the website.

Isn’t This Information Already On Your Website? Some of it is but most of the information in the Bike Touring Survival Guide is unique. In addition, the book gives you everything in one handy package. You can put it on your laptop or Kindle and have access to it wherever you are (regardless of internet access) and you don’t have to spend hours trawling for information.

What If I Don’t Like It? We’re pretty sure you’ll love the Bike Touring Survival Guide but just tell us if you don’t find it helpful. We’ll happily give you your money back within 30 days of purchase.